Prologue

"What are you saying, Terri?"

Paige bit her lip with a scowl. Her leg was bouncing uncontrollably beneath the table. But, above the table, she was cold and dispassionate. She refused to let her girlfriend know that she was on the verge of losing it.

"Paige, what we have is special." There was something sickeningly sweet and condescending in the way Terri's words were coming out. "And what we had last night was – incredible. Beyond incredible. Thank you."

Paige closed her eyes. She could tell what was coming. Terri's attempts to cushion the blow weren't making things anu better. "Just say what you have to say," she growled through her gritted teeth.

Terri let out a deep breath, reaching for Paige's hand. "Well, okay, Paige. You know that I'm leaving for college on Monday. We're going to be separated by almost half the country. It just doesn't make sense for you to save yourself for me. I wouldn't dream of asking you to do that."

Paige shook her head. This wasn't about what made sense for her, and Terri knew that.

"Paige." Page pulled her hand away. She didn't jerk it away in anger. She wouldn't give Terri that. She stayed calm; her eyes cold steel bullets.

"Go on," she demanded in a low snarl.

"I don't want to make promises that I can't keep. College is supposed to be fun; free and easy. You know, like a salad bar. Sample a little bit of this, a little bit of that…"

"So, that's it? It's over between us?"

"It doesn't have to be, Paige. I'd love to see you again, in the summers. And, who knows? Maybe in a couple of years, I'll see you in college!"

"So, you just expect me to wait for you, while you're out having your fun?"

"No, Paige. That's not what I'm saying. I'm telling you that we should both have our fun. And, maybe, sometime in the future, circumstances or fate will bring us back to each other." Paige sniffled in spite of herself, and Terri stretched her hands across the table, taking Paige's wrists. "Look. You're young. Everything seems so serious to you, right now. I get that."

"Don't," Paige warned, glaring at Terri as she rose from her seat. She had heard enough. She didn't need to be patronized.

"Paige?" Paige turned back toward the table with an icy stare. Terri stood up and took a step toward her. "I do love you. Please don't ever doubt that."

Paige scoffed and turn around, not looking back.

Two years. She and Terri had been together for two years. Of course, they had had their ups and downs, like any couple, but they had started to build something. Or, at least, that's what Paige had thought. That was why Paige had given herself to Terri. And it had been perfect; she felt so valued and loved. Terri was tender and patient with her. Right up until she got what she wanted.

Paige tossed and turned all that night in bed. She wanted to convince herself that Terri had actually loved her during the time that they were together; that she hadn't just been used and tossed aside. But she was only able to make peace with the situation by finally convincing herself that it didn't matter. Whatever she thought they had - and whatever Terri thought of they had, it was over. The only good thing that had come from it was cruel experience, the world's best teacher.

Paige had learned her lesson well. Terri had it right. Get what you want, then get out and explore what else is out there.

It's like dessert. You may love chocolate mousse, but that doesn't mean you have to be exclusive with it. That would be stupid, when there are so many other desserts to sample.

And Paige had quite an appetite. She decided that she wanted to taste them all.

Two Years Later

Emily curled up in Hanna's embrace, her body wracked by sobs, as hard as she struggled to remain strong. "How could she do this to me? After all that we've been through?"

She kept asking those same questions over and over.

"It's okay. It's okay." Hanna glanced helplessly up at Aria and Spencer, her eyes pleading for some assistance.

"What did I do wrong?"

"Emily, don't blame yourself," Aria said soothingly. "You're not the one at fault here."

Emily pushed off from Hanna, wiping her eyes. "Look, I know that you guys were never Maya's biggest fans..."

"Emily," Spencer rasped, "This isn't even about that!"

"We all know how much Maya meant to you, and we all respect that," Aria assured her. This wasn't the time to say, "I told you so." This was the time to be there for their friend.

"We're just saying that this – what she did to you with that... guy – it's not your fault."

"She just proved that she doesn't deserve someone like you."

"It's clearly my fault," Emily said, annoyed. "If I had been a better girlfriend..."

"Emily..." Spencer sat next to Emily and Hanna on the bed. "You're so much better than her."

"She's just jealous," Aria agreed. "Jealous that you're moving forward and going somewhere in life, while she's stuck back here in Rosewood."

"Why do you think she kept picking fights with you ever since you started talking about going away to college?" Hanna asked. "Em, this isn't about you not being good enough for her, this is about Maya lashing out and trying to hurt you, to make herself feel better. Because she knows that, as soon as you move away and see what else is out there, you'll see how poorly she measures up."

Emily shook her head. "Hanna, I would never..."

Emily didn't finish the thought, but Aria picked up on it for her. "We know that, Emily. We know that you wouldn't ever cheat."

"That's what makes you so much better than her."

As much as Emily's friends were trying to make her feel better, she didn't need to hear what they were saying, not when the wound was still so fresh. Even though they never approved of Maya, the feelings that Emily had for her were real - and still strong. "Look," she said with a sigh, using the twisted tissue in her hand to wipe her eyes again, "I appreciate what you guys are saying. I know that you're trying to make me feel better, but I really... I just need to be by myself right now."

Spencer rubbed Emily's back. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Emily sniffled as she nodded her head. "I promise I'm not going to shut you guys out forever. Just - for right now."

The girls nodded and gave Emily hugs, promising to be there for her whenever she was ready.

Hanna walked the girls downstairs and then returned to Emily's room, despite their protests that she should honor Emily's desire for some time alone.

Hanna tilted her head as she knocked on the door, pushing it open. "Hey..."

Emily sighed. "Look, Hanna," she said patiently. "I appreciate that you're concerned, but, really, I can't talk about this anymore right now. Please."

"I don't want to talk about it! I want to talk about college! Are you ready to room with Spencer?" Hanna asked with her eyes wide, ominously wiggling her fingers in front of Emily's face.

Emily laughed, disarmed. She hugged Hanna as Hanna sat next to her on the bed.

"Yeah - what was I thinking? How did I let her talk me into that one?"

After a good twenty minutes of talking and laughing - and not thinking about Maya at all - Hanna turned serious. "Listen, Emily. You go off to college and you have the time of your life, okay?" Her voice was firm as she leaned in, wagging her index finger in Emily's face. "Find some hot young thing and let her fuck your brains out!" Emily laughed. Even though she was still sniffling the pain away, it felt good to be able to laugh. Hanna gave her a hug. "Oh, yeah, and get that degree, too. You know, one of these days, I'm going to do something stupid and need a lawyer!"

"Hanna," Emily shook her head. "Spencer's going to be the lawyer. I'm going to be the physiotherapist, remember?"

"Whatever!" Hanna bumped Emily with her shoulder. "If I do something really stupid, I'll probably need one of those, too!"

A/N – Thanks for reading!

This story is based on a prompt by thecatfromaliceinwonderland. I'll share the full prompt in the next chapter – don't want to spoil it yet… :)

And, as always, just to be clear - This story is pro-Paily, not anti-anybody. Ship and let ship... I'll do my best to respect the other ships out there, but please recognize that someone has to be the villain. Thanks for understanding! :)